3.5
Faded Grandeur, but access is very good.
We visited twice during our holiday. The first visit we had lunch in the bar. It was nice with standard bar prices. We had a short walk then returned for coffee and cake in the coffee lounge. The kitchen closes at 2pm but the coffee lounge stays open till 5pm. Lovely views at the back (see photo). We were so impressed by ease of access etc, that we booked Afternoon Tea for our last day. It was a disappointment. We were the only ones there in the large dining room. They put on some piped music in a vain attempt to create atmosphere. The tea was not in china cups, they gave us only one plate each, so we had to ask for another for our cakes. No one came to ask if we wanted drinks from the bar, which we did. Staff left us to it, and did not check on us until we had almost finished. The sandwiches were nice, but most of the cakes bland, and the scones hard and dry, not fresh that day. I enjoyed the cake I had in the coffee lounge far more. It was bizarre that they didn't use the same quality of cakes as their own coffee lounge. There were cabinets of antiques and jewellery I enjoyed looking in. The period building was once visited by Queen Victoria as a young woman, but now it has an air of faded grandeur. It could easily be brought back up to snuff with a good clean, some TLC and a fresh coat of paint. Had we just had the lunch, this review would have been much more positive. I'd recommend lunch (before the kitchen closes) and the coffee lounge, but don't waste your money on the afternoon tea until they have learned how to do this properly and make guests feel more special by using china, proper linen napkins (these were put out for dinner, but we were just given paper ones), and found a supplier for decent cakes.
We visited twice during our holiday. The first visit we had lunch in the bar. It was nice with standard bar prices. We had a short walk then returned for coffee and cake in the coffee lounge. The kitchen closes at 2pm but the coffee lounge stays open till 5pm. Lovely views at the back (see photo). We were so impressed by ease of access etc, that we booked Afternoon Tea for our last day. It was a disappointment. We were the only ones there in the large dining room. They put on some piped music in a vain attempt to create atmosphere. The tea was not in china cups, they gave us only one plate each, so we had to ask for another for our cakes. No one came to ask if we wanted drinks from the bar, which we did. Staff left us to it, and did not check on us until we had almost finished. The sandwiches were nice, but most of the cakes bland, and the scones hard and dry, not fresh that day. I enjoyed the cake I had in the coffee lounge far more. It was bizarre that they didn't use the same quality of cakes as their own coffee lounge. There were cabinets of antiques and jewellery I enjoyed looking in. The period building was once visited by Queen Victoria as a young woman, but now it has an air of faded grandeur. It could easily be brought back up to snuff with a good clean, some TLC and a fresh coat of paint. Had we just had the lunch, this review would have been much more positive. I'd recommend lunch (before the kitchen closes) and the coffee lounge, but don't waste your money on the afternoon tea until they have learned how to do this properly and make guests feel more special by using china, proper linen napkins (these were put out for dinner, but we were just given paper ones), and found a supplier for decent cakes.
For additional detailed accessibility information, please contact: reception@bulkeleyhotel.co.uk
